Elegant... delicate meditation on the cyclical nature of history, and the strength of communities

A novel with real, haunting power

Hooton's voice is beautifully lyrical, gentle and appreciative of nature; as the novel builds we too are drawn into this world, and the jaggedly horrifying finale. Beautifully written and highly recommended

Sensuous and arresting, Hooton's writing is consistently alive with imagery

A beautifully evocative and carefully crafted novel that skilfully captures a vivid landscape while giving us a glimpse into the lives of its diverse yet complex community. Tensely atmospheric, building to a stunning and horrifying climax, this is truly a novel to savour

An enigmatic and poetic novel

Tender, tough, schmaltzy, witty and heart-warming all at once. Knight has a great comic touch - there are some wonderfully rude bits and a fantastic rant about the ridiculous expectations piled on 21st-century women to be perfect - and writes with a deceptive lightness. At the heart of this funny, affectionate novel is an acknowledgement that families, like love, come in odd shapes and sizes, and that both matter more than anything

Witty enough to make you laugh out loud, but there are moments of real emotion that keep the book from being too light

A superb ear for dialogue...wonderfully comic

Riotously high in laughs and glamour. I defy a festive grump not to be cheered by it

Fast-paced and funny

Influenced by magical realism and the cool prose of modernism, first-time author Chloe Aridjis takes the best from each